Chapter 36 - 24: Entering a Dream (2)

Just before she died, however, "she" suddenly understood.

Why did Shawn Monroe just watch "her" leave without a word? Why was the look in Nora Lowell’s eyes, standing beside him, so cold? Why did no one stop "her" along the way? Did they all think "she" deserved this end?

But even if "she" had done so many things wrong, at the very least, "her" love for him was real.

He just didn’t need it.

In her room, Paige Summers shot up in bed, drenched in sweat. In the darkness, her eyes were wide open, her body trembled, and her cheeks were wet with tears.

’...It was a dream, right?’

’What the hell was that!’

It must have just been a dream, but the immense pain of being torn apart by a Mutant Beast still seemed to linger, leaving her shaken. And the events of the dream felt as real as if she had lived through them, every detail vivid in her mind.

She knew very well that these weren’t her memories.

When she’d read the novel, it was just for fun. How could she possibly remember the details and psychological states so clearly?

’No, on second thought, none of this seemed to be in the original text.’

"Paige Summers" was just a side character; who would care if she truly loved the male lead? In the readers’ eyes, she was just a two-faced schemer, a character designed to make the female lead seem more genuine and independent by contrast. In the parts of the novel she’d read, this side character was merely a stumbling block on the main couple’s path to love—a disposable character whose death would be cause for celebration. Forget about redemption; if any reader felt even a shred of pity for her, they’d be snapped back to their senses with a sharp reminder of "she brought it on herself!" Even she herself had been furious with this namesake character, shouting that she was a total idiot!

’Then, what was all that she’d just dreamed about?’

The more she thought about it, the more her blood ran cold!

Taking a few deep breaths, she got out of bed, went to the bathroom to clean herself up, and changed her clothes. She then walked into her workshop. Touching her familiar tools and materials, her heart finally began to calm.

Outside the window, it was still pitch black, a long time before dawn.

But she had no desire to sleep.

Toying with the carving knife in her hand, she thought for a long time before finally letting out a soft sigh.

’Perhaps this isn’t just a dream.’

Because the woman who the original "Paige" had framed, the one who took Nora Lowell’s place and fell into the horde of Mutant Beasts... although the "Paige" in the dream didn’t know her name, the Paige sitting here now knew it very well.

Leanne Walsh...

’Did she try to kill me multiple times because of something that hasn’t even happened yet in this reality?’

Then, the answer seemed clear.

’She knows her future fate!’

’A reincarnator?’ The thought popped into Paige Summers’s mind.

It wasn’t impossible.

Since she herself had transmigrated, it wouldn’t be surprising for a reincarnator to appear as well.

If that was the case, then everything made sense.

’What a headache!’

’Every single one of them is completely ridiculous. Isn’t it exhausting, being ready to live or die for such an unremarkable man?’

’And then there’s Nora Lowell.’

’She’s ruthless!’

’As expected of the female lead!’

Heh. Paige Summers forced a laugh from her throat.

After such a scare, she paradoxically felt a sense of clarity. For some reason, her entire mindset had shifted, and she was able to let go of many things.

Before, she had been too concerned with the characters from the original novel, which made her seem overly anxious.

In reality, she hadn’t fallen in love with Shawn Monroe, and she certainly wouldn’t do anything irrational for his sake. Although she was unavoidably entangled in certain matters, like Shawn Monroe’s covetous eyes on her, moving to another base and leaving the male and female leads behind didn’t guarantee everything would be fine.

The trouble that was meant to come would find its way to her sooner or later.

Right now, the most troublesome issue was probably Leanne Walsh.

She felt a degree of sympathy for Leanne’s past life, but that wasn’t a reason to forgive her for trying to kill an innocent person in this one!

She had to avenge Hugo Perry’s death.

Of course, the other woman’s hatred for her would be just as intense, if not more so.

The two of them were therefore locked in a fight to the death!

She spent half the night organizing her thoughts, and by the time she was done, the sky was gradually beginning to lighten.

Paige Summers stretched and began to prepare her materials.

Things had to be done one at a time, and the road ahead had to be walked one step at a time.

The first thing she had to consider was modifying the Crossbow.

Since Marcus Monroe was showing sincerity, she naturally wouldn’t be stingy.

He claimed he wouldn’t use it in The Dead City and wouldn’t leak the design, but were there no spies from The Dead City in other places? She didn’t believe that for a second.

Still, this man seemed decent for the time being.

Steady and magnanimous.

The fact that he could attract a group of followers showed that he had, at the least, some successful methods in how he dealt with people and matters.

In that case, she should also demonstrate her own value, which would make him eager for further cooperation.

Currently, there wasn’t much room for improvement on the crossbow’s body itself. The focus had to be on the Crossbow Arrows.

Paige Summers thought relentlessly, even mentally simulating her battle with the Mutant Beast inside her room, and she finally found a general direction. Taking her own Crossbow as an example, the Crossbow Arrows were small. The advantage was that they didn’t easily alert the target when fired, but there was also a disadvantage: without proper training, it was difficult for the user to hit their mark.

In this era, people’s relationship with weapons was like people’s relationship with cameras or similar tools in her original world. Only professionals would spend years, or even a decade, mastering them. But what about most people? They just wanted something simple, easy to understand, and easy to use. Not to mention, the people here didn’t have that much time for study; you could even say that most of their learning was done while hunting and being hunted!

Therefore, if it wasn’t a custom order and was meant to be a weapon for the masses, the length of the Crossbow Arrow and the way it delivered its impact had to be changed.

Paige Summers left a message outside her door for a certain someone, telling him to handle Woody Warren’s side of things. She needed to focus on designing the Crossbow and was not to be disturbed!

Marcus Monroe was also very perceptive.

It wasn’t until Paige Summers emerged from her seclusion that she saw someone sitting cross-legged and silent at her door, as if they had been waiting for a long time.

Her eyes were a bit dazed as she stared at the person. "It’s you?!"